Raptors 905 have named Jerry Stackhouse their new head coach, the team announced Friday.
Chris Reichert of Upside & Motor first reported the news on Aug. 1, something we passed along and broke down at that time. I’ll direct you to that link for full analysis, but here’s a clip:
As affable and quotable as they come, Stackhouse only has a year of experience on an NBA staff, having landed with the Raptors last summer. He does, however, bring some experience coaching at the AAU level, and he got a taste of running a team at Las Vegas Summer League last month. During his freshman season as an assistant, players spoke highly of working with Stackhosue one-on-one, particularly on the offensive end of the floor, and it’s clear his personality helps provide some amount of necessary levity at times.
It’s hard to get a gauge for how effective Stackhouse may be as the man in charge, and it will be interesting to see how the young players respond to him. (The 905 run the parent club’s schemes at each end of the floor, using largely the same playbook, but Stackhouse may ditch the Raptors’ offense in favor of nothing but long twos.) If nothing else, it should be a lot of fun to see and hear Stackhouse trash-talking from the sidelines.
“We are very excited to name Jerry Stackhouse our new head coach,” Raptors 905 general manager Dan Tolzman said in a release. “The basketball pedigree that he brings to the 905 bench is as good as it gets in the D-League. We believe that his experience as a successful NBA player along with his year spent learning under Coach Casey on the Raptors staff will go a long way in helping teach the young players within our system what it takes to thrive at the next level.”
“I am honoured to have the opportunity and challenge to lead our D-League team,” Stackhouse said. “I appreciate the confidence Masai (Raptors President Masai Ujiri) and Dan have shown in me to continue the development of our younger players.”
Stackhouse’s first appearance as the D-League squad’s new head coach will come tomorrow as the 905 hold open tryouts.
For the parent club Toronto Raptors, Stackhouse is the second loss from Dwane Casey’s coaching staff this summer, along with Andy Greer. The Raptors expect to announce replacements for Stackhouse and Greer sometime before training camp opens.
